Laura K put it well - he told us he was happy with the draft weeks ago and that he would join on that basis. But now he is having to give up his sausage, egg, chips and beans (and a slice) because that draft has evidently been watered down dramatically.
How can that be portrayed as a victory?
We portrayed the evacuation at Dunkerque as a truly great victory.
No we didn't. From Churchill's Dunkirk speech: "We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations."
That's the media for you. Dunkirk spirit everywhere.
Makes us proud to be British that our two most famous military exploits were Dunkirk, which was a retreat, and the Charge of the Light Brigade, which was a fiasco.
Normandy is more famous than both of those put together.
Although if we're going to be honest, that was more of an American operation than a British one.
We can claim the Battle of Britain however!
With a bit of Polish, Czech & Commonwealth help.
There were even one or two French fliers I believe.
But the vast, vast majority were British,
There were also, whisper it, twenty or thirty Belgian fighter pilots flying in the RAF during the BoB.
The ones I have always had a huge admiration for were the 10 Irish pilots along with the thousands of Irish who fought in the British forces generally in WW2. Some 5000 joined the British army, most of them regulars from the Irish army. When they returned home after the war they were formally dismissed from the Irish army, stripped of all pay and pension rights, and prevented from finding work by being banned for seven years from any employment paid for by state or government funds.
A heavy price to pay for doing what they thought was right in fighting fascism.
Laura K put it well - he told us he was happy with the draft weeks ago and that he would join on that basis. But now he is having to give up his sausage, egg, chips and beans (and a slice) because that draft has evidently been watered down dramatically.
How can that be portrayed as a victory?
We portrayed the evacuation at Dunkerque as a truly great victory.
No we didn't. From Churchill's Dunkirk speech: "We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations."
That's the media for you. Dunkirk spirit everywhere.
Makes us proud to be British that our two most famous military exploits were Dunkirk, which was a retreat, and the Charge of the Light Brigade, which was a fiasco.
Normandy is more famous than both of those put together.
To say nothing of the Battle of Britain and Trafalgar.
Don't forget the Anglo-Zanzibar war.
The Opium Wars - a high point...
That's worthy of exile to ConHome
I'm disappointed we failed to open a can of whoop-ass on the USA in the war of 1812.
Ok, we burnt the White House but that was due to crass American incompetence. We could have grabbed Maine and Vermont for Canada.
On the EU summit, as your local EU specialist I predict it'll end with a deal this evening or tomorrow morning. It won't run to Sunday.
Quite. I can't believe everyone is falling for the theatrics of this, yet again. It's quite clearly just being engineered to make the negotiations look tougher than they are so that it seems at the end of it that's a really great deal, and that Cameron "banged the table" like the strong leader he supposedly is.
Laura K put it well - he told us he was happy with the draft weeks ago and that he would join on that basis. But now he is having to give up his sausage, egg, chips and beans (and a slice) because that draft has evidently been watered down dramatically.
How can that be portrayed as a victory?
We portrayed the evacuation at Dunkerque as a truly great victory.
No we didn't. From Churchill's Dunkirk speech: "We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations."
That's the media for you. Dunkirk spirit everywhere.
Makes us proud to be British that our two most famous military exploits were Dunkirk, which was a retreat, and the Charge of the Light Brigade, which was a fiasco.
Normandy is more famous than both of those put together.
To say nothing of the Battle of Britain and Trafalgar.
Don't forget the Anglo-Zanzibar war.
The Opium Wars - a high point...
Off to CiF with you for a week!
He'll come back lauding the Battle of Orgreave against the hated dictator.
Laura K put it well - he told us he was happy with the draft weeks ago and that he would join on that basis. But now he is having to give up his sausage, egg, chips and beans (and a slice) because that draft has evidently been watered down dramatically.
How can that be portrayed as a victory?
We portrayed the evacuation at Dunkerque as a truly great victory.
No we didn't. From Churchill's Dunkirk speech: "We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations."
That's the media for you. Dunkirk spirit everywhere.
Makes us proud to be British that our two most famous military exploits were Dunkirk, which was a retreat, and the Charge of the Light Brigade, which was a fiasco.
Normandy is more famous than both of those put together.
Although if we're going to be honest, that was more of an American operation than a British one.
We can claim the Battle of Britain however!
With a bit of Polish, Czech & Commonwealth help.
If you look at the list of those who fought for the RAF at the end of the Battle of Britain film, there is a single American. I often wonder what his story was...
Laura K put it well - he told us he was happy with the draft weeks ago and that he would join on that basis. But now he is having to give up his sausage, egg, chips and beans (and a slice) because that draft has evidently been watered down dramatically.
How can that be portrayed as a victory?
We portrayed the evacuation at Dunkerque as a truly great victory.
No we didn't. From Churchill's Dunkirk speech: "We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations."
That's the media for you. Dunkirk spirit everywhere.
Makes us proud to be British that our two most famous military exploits were Dunkirk, which was a retreat, and the Charge of the Light Brigade, which was a fiasco.
Normandy is more famous than both of those put together.
Although if we're going to be honest, that was more of an American operation than a British one.
We can claim the Battle of Britain however!
With a bit of Polish, Czech & Commonwealth help.
There were even one or two French fliers I believe.
But the vast, vast majority were British,
There were also, whisper it, twenty or thirty Belgian fighter pilots flying in the RAF during the BoB.
The ones I have always had a huge admiration for were the 10 Irish pilots along with the thousands of Irish who fought in the British forces generally in WW2. Some 5000 joined the British army, most of them regulars from the Irish army. When they returned home after the war they were formally dismissed from the Irish army, stripped of all pay and pension rights, and prevented from finding work by being banned for seven years from any employment paid for by state or government funds.
A heavy price to pay for doing what they thought was right in fighting fascism.
I didn't know that.
Hopefully the UK government at some point made it up to them.
Although if we're going to be honest, that was more of an American operation than a British one.
Too many US movies being watched...
IIRC it was about 50% Americans, 35% British, 15% Commonwealth, but I could be wrong
Apparently around 73,000 US, 62,000 British and 21,000 Canadians. That is the men who actually landed on the day but as others have said the vast majority of the naval and air units were British as well.
She's a great MP. The success in Lewes owes a huge amount to her personally - she put in a massive amount of effort with a tiny team and very limted resources for most of the last parliamentary term. Only towards the end did CCHQ start taking her chances seriously and put more resources in.
Laura K put it well - he told us he was happy with the draft weeks ago and that he would join on that basis. But now he is having to give up his sausage, egg, chips and beans (and a slice) because that draft has evidently been watered down dramatically.
How can that be portrayed as a victory?
We portrayed the evacuation at Dunkerque as a truly great victory.
No we didn't. From Churchill's Dunkirk speech: "We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations."
That's the media for you. Dunkirk spirit everywhere.
Makes us proud to be British that our two most famous military exploits were Dunkirk, which was a retreat, and the Charge of the Light Brigade, which was a fiasco.
Normandy is more famous than both of those put together.
To say nothing of the Battle of Britain and Trafalgar.
Don't forget the Anglo-Zanzibar war.
The Opium Wars - a high point...
That's worthy of exile to ConHome
I'm disappointed we failed to open a can of whoop-ass on the USA in the war of 1812.
Ok, we burnt the White House but that was due to crass American incompetence. We could have grabbed Maine and Vermont for Canada.
We should have treated them like Carthage.
America is quite a big area to salt.
Apart from the salt flats. Obviously, a battalion of plucky British sappers got there first....
Although if we're going to be honest, that was more of an American operation than a British one.
Too many US movies being watched...
IIRC it was about 50% Americans, 35% British, 15% Commonwealth, but I could be wrong
Apparently around 73,000 US, 62,000 British and 21,000 Canadians. That is the men who actually landed on the day but as others have said the vast majority of the naval and air units were British as well.
Laura K put it well - he told us he was happy with the draft weeks ago and that he would join on that basis. But now he is having to give up his sausage, egg, chips and beans (and a slice) because that draft has evidently been watered down dramatically.
How can that be portrayed as a victory?
We portrayed the evacuation at Dunkerque as a truly great victory.
No we didn't. From Churchill's Dunkirk speech: "We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations."
That's the media for you. Dunkirk spirit everywhere.
Makes us proud to be British that our two most famous military exploits were Dunkirk, which was a retreat, and the Charge of the Light Brigade, which was a fiasco.
Normandy is more famous than both of those put together.
Although if we're going to be honest, that was more of an American operation than a British one.
We can claim the Battle of Britain however!
With a bit of Polish, Czech & Commonwealth help.
There were even one or two French fliers I believe.
But the vast, vast majority were British,
There were also, whisper it, twenty or thirty Belgian fighter pilots flying in the RAF during the BoB.
The ones I have always had a huge admiration for were the 10 Irish pilots along with the thousands of Irish who fought in the British forces generally in WW2. Some 5000 joined the British army, most of them regulars from the Irish army. When they returned home after the war they were formally dismissed from the Irish army, stripped of all pay and pension rights, and prevented from finding work by being banned for seven years from any employment paid for by state or government funds.
A heavy price to pay for doing what they thought was right in fighting fascism.
Éamon De Valera was a real shit.
Sending his condolences (WTF?) to the Germans on Hitler's death as the Red Army were battering down at the doors of the Reichstag.
Not only did we redecorate the White House during the 1812 skirmish, but when the Septics invaded Canada, even the francophones said "Non, monsieur, nous prefer les Rosbifs."
"Brexit fundamentalists"? Nice measured language there, OGH.
I'm surprised, and not a little disappointed how quickly this debate has taken on the grievance and demonising language of SINDYREF....how long before 'Quisling', 'Traitor', 'No-True Briton' and so forth.....there have been some remarkable transformations of previously sensible, temperate and level headed posters....
"Turnip" "Cretin" "Moron" will hopefully get an airing.
I will not be praising the Little Englanders old chap.
"Brexit fundamentalists"? Nice measured language there, OGH.
I'm surprised, and not a little disappointed how quickly this debate has taken on the grievance and demonising language of SINDYREF....how long before 'Quisling', 'Traitor', 'No-True Briton' and so forth.....there have been some remarkable transformations of previously sensible, temperate and level headed posters....
"Turnip" "Cretin" "Moron" will hopefully get an airing.
I will not be praising the Little Englanders old chap.
Hopefully the UK government at some point made it up to them.
Not sure about the British response but staggeringly it was only 2013 that the Dail passed a law granting amnesty and immunity from prosecution to anyone who fought for the British in WW2. Up to 3 years ago they could still theoretically face criminal charges for it under Irish law.
Why do you think Patterson is better than Fox? They both seem much of a muchness to me.
Paterson is more intelligent, but more importantly Fox proved to be flaky. He also made a hash of the only important task he's ever been given, namely the Strategic Defence Review. Since he had been Shadow Defence Minister, he should have done much more homework before the 2010 election (as other Shadow Ministers did in their respective roles).
In other words, it's not his political positioning, but his competence which is the problem.
Hopefully the UK government at some point made it up to them.
Not sure about the British response but staggeringly it was only 2013 that the Dail passed a law granting amnesty and immunity from prosecution to anyone who fought for the British in WW2. Up to 3 years ago they could still theoretically face criminal charges for it under Irish law.
I think it was only those who were previously serving in the Irish army, though I agree it still wasn't very creditable of the Irish government.
On the EU summit, as your local EU specialist I predict it'll end with a deal this evening or tomorrow morning. It won't run to Sunday.
Quite. I can't believe everyone is falling for the theatrics of this, yet again. It's quite clearly just being engineered to make the negotiations look tougher than they are so that it seems at the end of it that's a really great deal, and that Cameron "banged the table" like the strong leader he supposedly is.
Sweden used to have a drama every 3 years when the equivalent of the CBI had a huge negotiation with the equivalent of the TUC on everyone's wages (I think it's become much less centralised these days). Normally, the negotiations would battle on all night until the two sides would stumble out in the morning, unshaven and haggard, to announce that they'd reached a deal. There would then be a vote of all workers on whether to accept it, and it would be carried, as people were satisfied that all that could be achieved had been fought for.
One year, to everyone's surprise, they reached a deal by 8 the previous evening. Nonplussed, they debated what to do. If they just went out and announced it, it wouldn't look credible. So they put aside the final details, ordered in some crates of beer and played cards all night, before tidying up the details at 6am and stumbling out looking exhausted, etc. Amazingly, the story only got out some time later, after people had duly voted to agree.
Hopefully the UK government at some point made it up to them.
Not sure about the British response but staggeringly it was only 2013 that the Dail passed a law granting amnesty and immunity from prosecution to anyone who fought for the British in WW2. Up to 3 years ago they could still theoretically face criminal charges for it under Irish law.
I think it was only those who were previously serving in the Irish army, though I agree it still wasn't very creditable of the Irish government.
Yes sorry you are right. It was only the serving soldiers in the Defence Force who were prosecuted.
The key issue in the EU talks is the City of London. Cameron is the spivs' man.
The key issue isn't immigration, or child benefits for immigrants, or "emergency brakes", or Polish people. They are being given lots of column inches so that Britgov can retain some favour in its home market if the other powers decide to boot Britain out of the club.
French President François Hollande says there must be one set of rules “to fight against speculation”. Can you get it much clearer? That means no special rules for that monstrous creation on a square mile of East-Central London. No British government, and no newspaper with a wide circulation in Britain, has ever fought against the monster.
I told you that the members of the French political elite remember John Law. They remember the Stavisky affair too.
"France is concerned that the UK is seeking to carve out special protections for the City of London".
Vive la France!
3 points: the financial services sector is far wider than the City of London. It affects every financial product you and I use: mortgages, pensions, credit cards, bank accounts, insurance, ISAs etc etc.
It is a very significant industry for this country and it is simply unacceptable for an ally to seek to damage it.
Second, another word for "speculation" is "market", "investment" or "liquidity". "Speculation" is a word loaded with an assumption that what is being done is bad. And someone who approaches negotiations on that basis is not acting in good faith. They have an agenda. And that agenda would appear to be to tell another country how it should run or, indeed, whether it should have an industry at all.
Finally, if you're going to refer to John Law and Stavisky, you are not helping your case at all. It was the development of a financial sector supporting commercial activity and enabling government to fund itself which was one of the key reasons why England developed from the 17th century onwards and was ultimately able to defeat France. It was France's failure to do so which was one of the factors behind its military defeats and one of the factors which led to the French revolution. The French state never managed to put on a sustainable basis how it was going to fund itself, never managed to develop an effective commercial sector and a middle class which might have helped sustain a more viable political entity.
The Stavisky case was notable as an example of a strain in French thinking which lumped Jews, finance, speculation and conspiracies together. People who thought like that were keen on Vichy, Action Francaise and after the war some of them migrated to Poujadism and later to the FN. If that is the basis for France's approach to our finance sector, we should be worried not praising them.
Laura K put it well - he told us he was happy with the draft weeks ago and that he would join on that basis. But now he is having to give up his sausage, egg, chips and beans (and a slice) because that draft has evidently been watered down dramatically.
How can that be portrayed as a victory?
We portrayed the evacuation at Dunkerque as a truly great victory.
No we didn't. From Churchill's Dunkirk speech: "We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations."
That's the media for you. Dunkirk spirit everywhere.
Makes us proud to be British that our two most famous military exploits were Dunkirk, which was a retreat, and the Charge of the Light Brigade, which was a fiasco.
Normandy is more famous than both of those put together.
Although if we're going to be honest, that was more of an American operation than a British one.
We can claim the Battle of Britain however!
With a bit of Polish, Czech & Commonwealth help.
If you look at the list of those who fought for the RAF at the end of the Battle of Britain film, there is a single American. I often wonder what his story was...
Appears there were more than one, but some enlisted as 'Canadians'. Wonder if that would have invalidated a POTUS bid?
Many thanks for that. An Olympic gold medal winner too. And he started Aspen as a ski resort. A short but bright life. If I get to Boxgrove some time, I will doff my cap at his grave.
Why do you think Patterson is better than Fox? They both seem much of a muchness to me.
Paterson is more intelligent, but more importantly Fox proved to be flaky. He also made a hash of the only important task he's ever been given, namely the Strategic Defence Review. Since he had been Shadow Defence Minister, he should have done much more homework before the 2010 election (as other Shadow Ministers did in their respective roles).
In other words, it's not his political positioning, but his competence which is the problem.
The ones I have always had a huge admiration for were the 10 Irish pilots along with the thousands of Irish who fought in the British forces generally in WW2. Some 5000 joined the British army, most of them regulars from the Irish army. When they returned home after the war they were formally dismissed from the Irish army, stripped of all pay and pension rights, and prevented from finding work by being banned for seven years from any employment paid for by state or government funds.
A heavy price to pay for doing what they thought was right in fighting fascism.
The British are the only people in the world that can be shits.
On the subject of Irish volunteers in WW2 the history of the 38th Brigade will repay exploration. Made up of protestant and catholics from the North plus volunteers from the Free State, it was an ecumenical bunch which fought with great distinction in North Africa, Sicily and the length of Italy. On the way its Pipes and Drums Beat The Retreat in the Vatican, the Pipe Major being a Northern Presbyterian ("Not to worry, Sir we'll give wee Popie a blow") to the wild applause of the Irish seminarians. The Brigade commander was a Northern protestant but the Irish Tricolour was frequently flown at Brigade HQ. A marvellous, effective, eccentric unit well up there with the best traditions of the British Army.
I could cover a big loss on Marco, and sacrifice a good £200 profit on Trump in the process, or strap myself or prepare for a bumpy ride.
I'm relying on Trump as having a 70-80% shot and doing the latter!
Objectively Marco's price pretty much has to be a lay. But it's potentially a dangerous game. If Bush goes out the race he could drop to a frankly ludicrous 2.9 or something.
Anyone want to bet against me on whether 2016 will be the warmest year ever recorded globally? The band of merry folk who like to band about terms such as "AGW trough" etc perhaps?
That's the media for you. Dunkirk spirit everywhere.
Makes us proud to be British that our two most famous military exploits were Dunkirk, which was a retreat, and the Charge of the Light Brigade, which was a fiasco.
Normandy is more famous than both of those put together.
Although if we're going to be honest, that was more of an American operation than a British one.
We can claim the Battle of Britain however!
With a bit of Polish, Czech & Commonwealth help.
There were even one or two French fliers I believe.
But the vast, vast majority were British,
There were also, whisper it, twenty or thirty Belgian fighter pilots flying in the RAF during the BoB.
The ones I have always had a huge admiration for were the 10 Irish pilots along with the thousands of Irish who fought in the British forces generally in WW2. Some 5000 joined the British army, most of them regulars from the Irish army. When they returned home after the war they were formally dismissed from the Irish army, stripped of all pay and pension rights, and prevented from finding work by being banned for seven years from any employment paid for by state or government funds.
A heavy price to pay for doing what they thought was right in fighting fascism.
My father, an Irishman, was a Squadron Leader in the RAF during WW2. He stayed in Britain after the war. His family had no time for De Valera at all. His uncle also fought in WW1: he too was a doctor and was in the RAMC and died in September 1915. I have his war diary. Another ancestor won an award from the French government for his medical work during the 1870 Franco-Prussian war.
Interestingly, there is now a move within Ireland to collect the recollections of those Irish men and women who fought in both wars and to give them the recognition they deserve.
Anyone want to bet against me on whether 2016 will be the warmest year ever recorded globally? The band of merry folk who like to band about terms such as "AGW trough" etc perhaps?
No chance - these "scientists" have got too much invested in ensuring the figures are fiddled for that to fail.
Anyone want to bet against me on whether 2016 will be the warmest year ever recorded globally? The band of merry folk who like to band about terms such as "AGW trough" etc perhaps?
El Nino year. Makes it meaningless just like the 1998 El Nino year. Any sensible climate student long ago learnt not to use such years as indicators of a trend. Of course you have never been in danger of being considered sensible so I understand your confusion.
On the EU summit, as your local EU specialist I predict it'll end with a deal this evening or tomorrow morning. It won't run to Sunday.
Quite. I can't believe everyone is falling for the theatrics of this, yet again. It's quite clearly just being engineered to make the negotiations look tougher than they are so that it seems at the end of it that's a really great deal, and that Cameron "banged the table" like the strong leader he supposedly is.
Sweden used to have a drama every 3 years when the equivalent of the CBI had a huge negotiation with the equivalent of the TUC on everyone's wages (I think it's become much less centralised these days). Normally, the negotiations would battle on all night until the two sides would stumble out in the morning, unshaven and haggard, to announce that they'd reached a deal. There would then be a vote of all workers on whether to accept it, and it would be carried, as people were satisfied that all that could be achieved had been fought for.
One year, to everyone's surprise, they reached a deal by 8 the previous evening. Nonplussed, they debated what to do. If they just went out and announced it, it wouldn't look credible. So they put aside the final details, ordered in some crates of beer and played cards all night, before tidying up the details at 6am and stumbling out looking exhausted, etc. Amazingly, the story only got out some time later, after people had duly voted to agree.
Brilliant. Good for them.
I wonder, only half in jest, if really they're all sat around in Brussels watching movies with popcorn with the "deal" already signed off in a corner.
Poor PSF figures this morning. January surplus of £11.2bn well under expectations of ~£13bn given the massive rise in self-employment.
My payment probably didn't make it through until about the 2nd of Feb. I very much doubt I was alone, particularly as the 31st was a Sunday. I expect February figures to reflect that.
The ones I have always had a huge admiration for were the 10 Irish pilots along with the thousands of Irish who fought in the British forces generally in WW2. Some 5000 joined the British army, most of them regulars from the Irish army. When they returned home after the war they were formally dismissed from the Irish army, stripped of all pay and pension rights, and prevented from finding work by being banned for seven years from any employment paid for by state or government funds.
A heavy price to pay for doing what they thought was right in fighting fascism.
The British are the only people in the world that can be shits.
On the subject of Irish volunteers in WW2 the history of the 38th Brigade will repay exploration. Made up of protestant and catholics from the North plus volunteers from the Free State, it was an ecumenical bunch which fought with great distinction in North Africa, Sicily and the length of Italy. On the way its Pipes and Drums Beat The Retreat in the Vatican, the Pipe Major being a Northern Presbyterian ("Not to worry, Sir we'll give wee Popie a blow") to the wild applause of the Irish seminarians. The Brigade commander was a Northern protestant but the Irish Tricolour was frequently flown at Brigade HQ. A marvellous, effective, eccentric unit well up there with the best traditions of the British Army.
Brilliant HL. Many thanks for that. Being of Southern Irish protestant descent myself I do love such anecdotes.
One thing which puzzles me about the EU summit: isn't the fact that Spain hasn't currently got a proper government a bit of a problem?
I can't answer that but it does lead to the next question of what rights do the heads of state have to finalise a deal this weekend? I don't mean that in any argumentative way, just a simple observation that I would have thought that in a number of cases any binding agreement would have to be approved by the Parliaments of at least some of the countries involved.
Could we see agreement here then killed by a Parliament in one of the 27 countries voting it down? I don't know what the mechanism here is.
What is it about Richard Branson that's so similar to Tony Blair?
Are they the same person?
'Brexit' could cause break-up of EU, claims Richard Branson
A UK exit from the European Union would be very damaging for its economy and could spell the end of the whole EU project, billionaire businessman Richard Branson has said.
His comments come as Prime Minister David Cameron seeks a deal from other EU leaders at a summit in Brussels, that would allow him to argue for British membership at a referendum expected to be held in June.
"It would be a very, very, very, very sad day if British people voted to leave. I think it would be very, very damaging for Great Britain," Mr Branson, founder of Virgin Group, told Sky television.
"I think it would be the start of most likely the break-up of the European Union," he said. "I hope sense will prevail."
One thing which puzzles me about the EU summit: isn't the fact that Spain hasn't currently got a proper government a bit of a problem?
I can't answer that but it does lead to the next question of what rights do the heads of state have to finalise a deal this weekend? I don't mean that in any argumentative way, just a simple observation that I would have thought that in a number of cases any binding agreement would have to be approved by the Parliaments of at least some of the countries involved.
Could we see agreement here then killed by a Parliament in one of the 27 countries voting it down? I don't know what the mechanism here is.
Poor PSF figures this morning. January surplus of £11.2bn well under expectations of ~£13bn given the massive rise in self-employment.
My payment probably didn't make it through until about the 2nd of Feb. I very much doubt I was alone, particularly as the 31st was a Sunday. I expect February figures to reflect that.
How many billion do you expect your tax returns to reduce government borrowing by? If I can be so bold as to pry into your personal details....
Poor PSF figures this morning. January surplus of £11.2bn well under expectations of ~£13bn given the massive rise in self-employment.
My payment probably didn't make it through until about the 2nd of Feb. I very much doubt I was alone, particularly as the 31st was a Sunday. I expect February figures to reflect that.
Feb receipts usually come in at about £2.5bn for SA, it would have to be close to £4.5bn to make up for the January miss in SA expectations. I don't see that as very likely.
Even if it does materialise and there is some improvement in the March figures YoY, Osborne is going to overshoot the borrowing estimate by at least £5bn. As I said previously, he needs a massive revisions of the YTD figures and a huge expectations beat in Feb to make the OBR estimate. Anything less than £2bn over won't be such a big deal, but more than that and you're talking about real money that can't just be magicked away with efficiency savings in the following year.
What is it about Richard Branson that's so similar to Tony Blair?
Are they the same person?
'Brexit' could cause break-up of EU, claims Richard Branson
A UK exit from the European Union would be very damaging for its economy and could spell the end of the whole EU project, billionaire businessman Richard Branson has said.
His comments come as Prime Minister David Cameron seeks a deal from other EU leaders at a summit in Brussels, that would allow him to argue for British membership at a referendum expected to be held in June.
"It would be a very, very, very, very sad day if British people voted to leave. I think it would be very, very damaging for Great Britain," Mr Branson, founder of Virgin Group, told Sky television.
"I think it would be the start of most likely the break-up of the European Union," he said. "I hope sense will prevail."
Tax exile Branson, the one who lives on Necker to dodge paying anything into the pot?
He should stick to sorting out his ridiculous space project.
Anyone want to bet against me on whether 2016 will be the warmest year ever recorded globally? The band of merry folk who like to band about terms such as "AGW trough" etc perhaps?
El Nino year. Makes it meaningless just like the 1998 El Nino year. Any sensible climate student long ago learnt not to use such years as indicators of a trend. Of course you have never been in danger of being considered sensible so I understand your confusion.
Haha - typical response from a flat-earther!
Of course there will be natural variations in the climate which include ENSO. I'm talking about the trend and the trend is up - the Earth is warming (there is absolutely no doubt about that!) - even the derived lower troposphere temperatures from the satellite data that you so love to quote all the time shows that.
I may not be an expert but I'm with the 97% here. Sceptics initially said there the Earth was actually cooling referencing the early and wrong derivations of the global temperatures from the satellite data. They quickly backtracked as their data and analysis were trashed. Now of course the mantra is "carbon dioxide is good for you - no need to worry!".
This is one of the BIGGEST issues facing us - we can be ignorant and blind or we can be intelligent - the choice is ours...
The deal will have been done by the fixers in the corridors and their wordsmiths.Several countries won't have a clue what they have agreed to and neither will anyone in the UK. I'm sure the deal is already done and this is just a bunch of blokes pretending to be peacocks. Cameron will get get his "deal" and Bottler Boris will accept it.
What is it about Richard Branson that's so similar to Tony Blair?
Are they the same person?
'Brexit' could cause break-up of EU, claims Richard Branson
A UK exit from the European Union would be very damaging for its economy and could spell the end of the whole EU project, billionaire businessman Richard Branson has said.
His comments come as Prime Minister David Cameron seeks a deal from other EU leaders at a summit in Brussels, that would allow him to argue for British membership at a referendum expected to be held in June.
"It would be a very, very, very, very sad day if British people voted to leave. I think it would be very, very damaging for Great Britain," Mr Branson, founder of Virgin Group, told Sky television.
"I think it would be the start of most likely the break-up of the European Union," he said. "I hope sense will prevail."
One thing which puzzles me about the EU summit: isn't the fact that Spain hasn't currently got a proper government a bit of a problem?
I can't answer that but it does lead to the next question of what rights do the heads of state have to finalise a deal this weekend? I don't mean that in any argumentative way, just a simple observation that I would have thought that in a number of cases any binding agreement would have to be approved by the Parliaments of at least some of the countries involved.
Could we see agreement here then killed by a Parliament in one of the 27 countries voting it down? I don't know what the mechanism here is.
I think in Spain there is a kind of temporary holding govt in position until any new coalition is agreed.
Poor PSF figures this morning. January surplus of £11.2bn well under expectations of ~£13bn given the massive rise in self-employment.
My payment probably didn't make it through until about the 2nd of Feb. I very much doubt I was alone, particularly as the 31st was a Sunday. I expect February figures to reflect that.
How many billion do you expect your tax returns to reduce government borrowing by? If I can be so bold as to pry into your personal details....
Anyone want to bet against me on whether 2016 will be the warmest year ever recorded globally? The band of merry folk who like to band about terms such as "AGW trough" etc perhaps?
El Nino year. Makes it meaningless just like the 1998 El Nino year. Any sensible climate student long ago learnt not to use such years as indicators of a trend. Of course you have never been in danger of being considered sensible so I understand your confusion.
Haha - typical response from a flat-earther!
Of course there will be natural variations in the climate which include ENSO. I'm talking about the trend and the trend is up - the Earth is warming (there is absolutely no doubt about that!) - even the derived lower troposphere temperatures from the satellite data that you so love to quote all the time shows that.
I may not be an expert but I'm with the 97% here. Sceptics initially said there the Earth was actually cooling referencing the early and wrong derivations of the global temperatures from the satellite data. They quickly backtracked as their data and analysis were trashed. Now of course the mantra is "carbon dioxide is good for you - no need to worry!".
This is one of the BIGGEST issues facing us - we can be ignorant and blind or we can be intelligent - the choice is ours...
In his worst nightmares, I'm sure Cameron never expected to begin his EU referendum campaign actually BEHIND in some of the polls
Last Summer, everything seemed to be coming up trumps for Remain. Yougov were putting Remain 10% ahead, and Ipsos Mori had them 34% ahead (albeit, an outlier). The migration crisis, terrorism, and the wretched negotiations have derailed this lead.
Anyone want to bet against me on whether 2016 will be the warmest year ever recorded globally? The band of merry folk who like to band about terms such as "AGW trough" etc perhaps?
El Nino year. Makes it meaningless just like the 1998 El Nino year. Any sensible climate student long ago learnt not to use such years as indicators of a trend. Of course you have never been in danger of being considered sensible so I understand your confusion.
Haha - typical response from a flat-earther!
Of course there will be natural variations in the climate which include ENSO. I'm talking about the trend and the trend is up - the Earth is warming (there is absolutely no doubt about that!) - even the derived lower troposphere temperatures from the satellite data that you so love to quote all the time shows that.
I may not be an expert but I'm with the 97% here. Sceptics initially said there the Earth was actually cooling referencing the early and wrong derivations of the global temperatures from the satellite data. They quickly backtracked as their data and analysis were trashed. Now of course the mantra is "carbon dioxide is good for you - no need to worry!".
This is one of the BIGGEST issues facing us - we can be ignorant and blind or we can be intelligent - the choice is ours...
Actually the trend isn't up. The trend from the 1998 El Nino to this one is flat or slightly down. The trend ignoring the El Nino's is definitely very slightly down.
Your 97% comment shows you really don't have a clue what you are talking about as that has been comprehensively debunked years ago. The satellite data continues to be far more accurate than the discredited surface station data set.
The only person showing how ignorant and blind they are around here is you.
In his worst nightmares, I'm sure Cameron never expected to begin his EU referendum campaign actually BEHIND in some of the polls
Last Summer, everything seemed to be coming up trumps for Remain. Yougov were putting Remain 10% ahead, and Ipsos Mori had them 34% ahead (albeit, an outlier). The migration crisis, terrorism, and the wretched negotiations have derailed this lead.
Before the general election Cameron made a big deal about the renegotiation of the UK's position in the EU being substantial, and he said that he might well recommend leaving if he failed. It turns out that the renegotiations are of trivial matters, and we might not even get those, and Cameron appears to be planning to try and sell these worthless concessions come what may.
Even if Cameron wins this process demeans him and our country, and I hope we see the back of him as soon as possible.
On the EU summit, as your local EU specialist I predict it'll end with a deal this evening or tomorrow morning. It won't run to Sunday.
Quite. I can't believe everyone is falling for the theatrics of this, yet again. It's quite clearly just being engineered to make the negotiations look tougher than they are so that it seems at the end of it that's a really great deal, and that Cameron "banged the table" like the strong leader he supposedly is.
Sweden used to have a drama every 3 years when the equivalent of the CBI had a huge negotiation with the equivalent of the TUC on everyone's wages (I think it's become much less centralised these days). Normally, the negotiations would battle on all night until the two sides would stumble out in the morning, unshaven and haggard, to announce that they'd reached a deal. There would then be a vote of all workers on whether to accept it, and it would be carried, as people were satisfied that all that could be achieved had been fought for.
One year, to everyone's surprise, they reached a deal by 8 the previous evening. Nonplussed, they debated what to do. If they just went out and announced it, it wouldn't look credible. So they put aside the final details, ordered in some crates of beer and played cards all night, before tidying up the details at 6am and stumbling out looking exhausted, etc. Amazingly, the story only got out some time later, after people had duly voted to agree.
Brilliant. Good for them.
I wonder, only half in jest, if really they're all sat around in Brussels watching movies with popcorn with the "deal" already signed off in a corner.
Probably. Angela probably came prepared with the Hunger Games boxset.
Poor PSF figures this morning. January surplus of £11.2bn well under expectations of ~£13bn given the massive rise in self-employment.
My payment probably didn't make it through until about the 2nd of Feb. I very much doubt I was alone, particularly as the 31st was a Sunday. I expect February figures to reflect that.
How many billion do you expect your tax returns to reduce government borrowing by? If I can be so bold as to pry into your personal details....
They probably won't even notice my little contribution but it still hurt! Over the last couple of years we have seen a spill over of January payments into February and given where the 31st fell I think we just might see a slightly bigger effect this year.
Comments
A heavy price to pay for doing what they thought was right in fighting fascism.
Did you hear Owen Paterson? Still rate him?
Appears there were more than one, but some enlisted as 'Canadians'. Wonder if that would have invalidated a POTUS bid?
Hopefully the UK government at some point made it up to them.
She's a great MP. The success in Lewes owes a huge amount to her personally - she put in a massive amount of effort with a tiny team and very limted resources for most of the last parliamentary term. Only towards the end did CCHQ start taking her chances seriously and put more resources in.
ARG 2/17 - 2/18 401 LV T34 C13 R22 B9 K14 C4
Apart from the salt flats. Obviously, a battalion of plucky British sappers got there first....
Sending his condolences (WTF?) to the Germans on Hitler's death as the Red Army were battering down at the doors of the Reichstag.
Not only did we redecorate the White House during the 1812 skirmish, but when the Septics invaded Canada, even the francophones said "Non, monsieur, nous prefer les Rosbifs."
Dave and Frau Merkel should have united to take on les grenouilles
"Éamon De Valera was a real shit."
The Yanks again - he was born in New York. And he did for Michael Collins too.
Well the great news is that a mere seventy years later the Irish authorities pardoned them for the appalling crime of wanting to fight Hitler.
Cause for concern?
In other words, it's not his political positioning, but his competence which is the problem.
One year, to everyone's surprise, they reached a deal by 8 the previous evening. Nonplussed, they debated what to do. If they just went out and announced it, it wouldn't look credible. So they put aside the final details, ordered in some crates of beer and played cards all night, before tidying up the details at 6am and stumbling out looking exhausted, etc. Amazingly, the story only got out some time later, after people had duly voted to agree.
I know this because I've seen Pearl Harbour. A titan of cinema.
I feel like apologising for my lack of spirit but for some reason it just doesn't do it for me..
A bunch of suits glad-handing and congratulating eachother on being masters of the universe is just a fact of life. It will always be thus.
It's all a bit MEH... doesn't motivate me at all.
It is a very significant industry for this country and it is simply unacceptable for an ally to seek to damage it.
Second, another word for "speculation" is "market", "investment" or "liquidity". "Speculation" is a word loaded with an assumption that what is being done is bad. And someone who approaches negotiations on that basis is not acting in good faith. They have an agenda. And that agenda would appear to be to tell another country how it should run or, indeed, whether it should have an industry at all.
Finally, if you're going to refer to John Law and Stavisky, you are not helping your case at all. It was the development of a financial sector supporting commercial activity and enabling government to fund itself which was one of the key reasons why England developed from the 17th century onwards and was ultimately able to defeat France. It was France's failure to do so which was one of the factors behind its military defeats and one of the factors which led to the French revolution. The French state never managed to put on a sustainable basis how it was going to fund itself, never managed to develop an effective commercial sector and a middle class which might have helped sustain a more viable political entity.
The Stavisky case was notable as an example of a strain in French thinking which lumped Jews, finance, speculation and conspiracies together. People who thought like that were keen on Vichy, Action Francaise and after the war some of them migrated to Poujadism and later to the FN. If that is the basis for France's approach to our finance sector, we should be worried not praising them.
IIRC there weren't any US inmates present to make The Great Escape either.
His personal judgement is dreadful.
I'm relying on Trump as having a 70-80% shot and doing the latter!
(only half in jest!)
On the subject of Irish volunteers in WW2 the history of the 38th Brigade will repay exploration. Made up of protestant and catholics from the North plus volunteers from the Free State, it was an ecumenical bunch which fought with great distinction in North Africa, Sicily and the length of Italy. On the way its Pipes and Drums Beat The Retreat in the Vatican, the Pipe Major being a Northern Presbyterian ("Not to worry, Sir we'll give wee Popie a blow") to the wild applause of the Irish seminarians. The Brigade commander was a Northern protestant but the Irish Tricolour was frequently flown at Brigade HQ. A marvellous, effective, eccentric unit well up there with the best traditions of the British Army.
January 2016 was the warmest January ever recorded according to NOAA.
https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/201601
Arctic sea ice is also anomalously low - probably going to hit a recorded low for the maximum arctic sea-ice extent this year.
https://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/
Anyone want to bet against me on whether 2016 will be the warmest year ever recorded globally? The band of merry folk who like to band about terms such as "AGW trough" etc perhaps?
"I'll only do a deal if we get what Britain needs" - Cameron arrives at the summit in Brussels for the second day
https://t.co/wrV30Isqqi
My father, an Irishman, was a Squadron Leader in the RAF during WW2. He stayed in Britain after the war. His family had no time for De Valera at all. His uncle also fought in WW1: he too was a doctor and was in the RAMC and died in September 1915. I have his war diary. Another ancestor won an award from the French government for his medical work during the 1870 Franco-Prussian war.
Interestingly, there is now a move within Ireland to collect the recollections of those Irish men and women who fought in both wars and to give them the recognition they deserve.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-35613085
I wonder, only half in jest, if really they're all sat around in Brussels watching movies with popcorn with the "deal" already signed off in a corner.
Could we see agreement here then killed by a Parliament in one of the 27 countries voting it down? I don't know what the mechanism here is.
Are they the same person?
'Brexit' could cause break-up of EU, claims Richard Branson
A UK exit from the European Union would be very damaging for its economy and could spell the end of the whole EU project, billionaire businessman Richard Branson has said.
His comments come as Prime Minister David Cameron seeks a deal from other EU leaders at a summit in Brussels, that would allow him to argue for British membership at a referendum expected to be held in June.
"It would be a very, very, very, very sad day if British people voted to leave. I think it would be very, very damaging for Great Britain," Mr Branson, founder of Virgin Group, told Sky television.
"I think it would be the start of most likely the break-up of the European Union," he said. "I hope sense will prevail."
Online or Phone?
How many billion do you expect your tax returns to reduce government borrowing by? If I can be so bold as to pry into your personal details....
Even if it does materialise and there is some improvement in the March figures YoY, Osborne is going to overshoot the borrowing estimate by at least £5bn. As I said previously, he needs a massive revisions of the YTD figures and a huge expectations beat in Feb to make the OBR estimate. Anything less than £2bn over won't be such a big deal, but more than that and you're talking about real money that can't just be magicked away with efficiency savings in the following year.
He should stick to sorting out his ridiculous space project.
Of course there will be natural variations in the climate which include ENSO. I'm talking about the trend and the trend is up - the Earth is warming (there is absolutely no doubt about that!) - even the derived lower troposphere temperatures from the satellite data that you so love to quote all the time shows that.
I may not be an expert but I'm with the 97% here. Sceptics initially said there the Earth was actually cooling referencing the early and wrong derivations of the global temperatures from the satellite data. They quickly backtracked as their data and analysis were trashed. Now of course the mantra is "carbon dioxide is good for you - no need to worry!".
This is one of the BIGGEST issues facing us - we can be ignorant and blind or we can be intelligent - the choice is ours...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gr6dSo6SrCE
I'm sure the deal is already done and this is just a bunch of blokes pretending to be peacocks.
Cameron will get get his "deal" and Bottler Boris will accept it.
Well it's his fault for trying to sell a pig in a poke.
I've little time for Branson nowadays. He's gone, understandably, all Establishment.
He war with BA is a distant memory, along with his record label.
He can read from the same scare sheet
Doubt it'll make much difference now unless he's looking for an excuse to walk away.
Germany must be shitting it if that's correct.
Lord Ashcroft sent us the detailed breakdown of his epic 20,000 sample Scottish Independence polling from early 2014.
Greater London 34% in, 41% out.
Not sure how much a difference 'Greater' makes, but isn't that the second recent poll showing London for out?
Your 97% comment shows you really don't have a clue what you are talking about as that has been comprehensively debunked years ago. The satellite data continues to be far more accurate than the discredited surface station data set.
The only person showing how ignorant and blind they are around here is you.
Camilla Long
I love this, from @popbitch: "The British Embassy in Buenos Aires has its own pub. Called The Hand of God."
*These numbers may not necessarily be accurate.
Even if Cameron wins this process demeans him and our country, and I hope we see the back of him as soon as possible.